Tiny Diggers – An iPad Construction Truck Game for Kids Age 2-5

After trying several times to get Sony to accept my credit card info I was finally able to download and play Warhawk. The first thing that will strike you is the scale of the game. There are huge environments in which to run or fly around. Unfortunately each of these environments do little to differentiate themselves from one another. In the end you only feel like you have about 3 maps to play on. Warhawk does make up a bit for this with solid aerial gameplay and well balanced gameplay. First thing though is to completely get the idea of using the motion controls out of your head. Even though the controls are better then Lair’s, you will have a hard time tweaking your setting to get the responsiveness needed for this type of game. Motion controls aside the PS3 now has its first good (exclusive) online game.

UP UP AND AWAY!!!

In the air is where Warhawk truly shines. Once you get accustomed to the controls you will slowly start to spew debris on the citizens below. Dogfights are frenetic and fast paced with what felt like a good balance on weapons and power-ups, although I did wish there were more power-ups, as in large matches they disappear quickly. I also wished that there was more of a variety of weapons. The weapons all function nicely but none of them exude that “AWW COOL” feeling. That said, there is still enough variety to keep things interesting for quite a while. If you are fan of flight based combat then Warhawk is a game that you probably won’t regret buying.

YOU”RE GROUNDED!

The one aspect of the game that I have a problem with is the ground combat. As good as Warhawk is in the air, it’s just as mediocre on the ground. There are bright spots if you find yourself Warhawkless (I know…it’s not a real word). Getting in a turret or finding a rocket launcher are nice additions, and they make life on the ground less tedious, but in the end the terrible controls and wide open lifeless spaces make the ground game feel tacked on and just plain boring at times. I do like the idea of being able to hop out and fight on the ground seamlessly but it just was not realized fully in this game.

CONCLUSION

Warhawk is a great online game and with a discount price it is well worth the money. If you expecting an online game that will remain relevant for the next few years then you might want to look somewhere else. The overall lack of customization (and maps that all look nearly the same) hampers the longevity of the game. I look at Warhawk the same way I did Shadowrun. A good game but it lacks so much depth that we come to expect from online games, that in the end it just falls short form being a classic. I would love to see a sequel to this game. If they flesh out the ground game more and make some more interesting maps, it could be a killer app for the PS3.

THE UPSIDE
Fun Gameplay
Great Sound & Graphics
Amazing Sense of Speed
Stable Servers
Nice Menus

THE DOWNSIDE
Boring Weapons
Huge Learning Curve
Lack of Customization
32 Player Battles Too Crowded

Warhawk Gets 3.5 out of 5